GSK and EDCTP launch joint call for Senior Fellowship proposals

3 November 2017

In response to the growing challenge of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Africa, GSK and EDCTP will launch a joint call for proposals for Senior Fellowships in the area of co-morbidities of NCDs and poverty-related infectious diseases (PRDs) on 3 November 2017. EDCTP and GSK have committed equal funding to this initiative. Fellowship grants will be awarded for up to five years with total funding of up to a maximum of €500,000 per project.

EDCTP and GSK want to address the high burden PRDs and NCD co-morbidities in sub-Saharan Africa through sustainable development of African research capacity to conduct innovative research that can influence health care policy and practice. In line with this goal, EDCTP and GSK will jointly support Senior Fellowships which aim to develop future African research leadership in the area of prevention, therapeutic management, and prognosis of PRD and NCD co-morbidities.

EDCTP and GSK want to address the high burden of PRDs and NCD co-morbidities in sub-Saharan Africa through sustainable development of African research capacity to conduct innovative research that can influence health care policy and practice. In line with this goal, EDCTP and GSK will jointly support Senior Fellowships which aim to develop future African research leadership in the area of prevention, therapeutic management, and prognosis of PRD and NCD co-morbidities.

Health care in Africa is facing a significant challenge from the double burden of NCDs and PRDs. Often studied as two separate categories of disease, there is growing evidence for bi-directional relationships between manifestation and progression of PRDs and NCDs, with several co-morbidities relevant to health care in the African context identified to date. Examples include: the interrelationship between diabetes and tuberculosis; the link between Burkitt’s lymphoma and malaria; the role of certain viral infections in tumorigenesis; and the potentially increased risk of cardio-metabolic dysregulation reported for people living with HIV.